DREAM.15 recap: Shinya Aoki stuns Tatsuya Kawajiri in first round

Even without his magical submission pants, DREAM lightweight champion Shinya Aoki proved he’s still got a few tricks tucked away somewhere in his fight gear.

The submission ace rebounded from a horrific loss in April to Gilbert Melendez in stunning fashion and submitted fellow Japanese superstar Tatsuya Kawajiri in less than two minutes.

The attraction served as the main event of DREAM.15, which aired live in North America on HDNet early Saturday morning. The card took place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Aoki entered the ring without his signature rainbow pants, but it hardly mattered. “Tobikan Judan” latched onto a leg early and refused to let go. “Crusher” tried desperately to kick free, but Aoki had the limb in full control. Aoki rolled to his side and torqued an Achilles lock on the appendage, and Kawajiri finally tapped after apparently damaging the leg.

Kawajiri appeared injured as Aoki celebrated the quick win in the long-anticipated matchup. Following the victory, Aoki said he’s planning on a rematch with Strikeforce champ Melendez in September.

The evening’s co-feature delivered an exciting and apparently difficult-to-judge bout between Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante and Katsunori Kikuno. Both fighters had moments of brilliance, but it was ultimately “JZ” who controlled the closing moments of the contest and ultimately was awarded with a split-decision win.

The task wasn’t easy for Cavalcante, and Kikuno landed some effective shots from his feet while also handling himself well on the floor. Kikuno avoided early submission attempts from Cavalcante, and the fighter actually reversed the position toward the end of the first round and delivered several ground-and-pound blows to finish out the frame.

The second round told a different story.

Cavalcante worked the fight to the ground quickly and maintained his position for nearly the entire round. The Brazilian worked for submission attempts while trying to remain active from the top position. Kikuno ultimately worked free at the end of the round but Cavalcante had done enough in two judges’ eyes, and he was awarded the split-decision win.

Cavalcante (15-3-1 MMA, 1-2 DREAM), who is likely Strikeforce-bound, picks up his first win since September 2007. Kikuno (13-3-2 MMA, 2-2 DREAM) falls to just 1-2 in his past three fights.

In the final fight before the evening’s intermission, and second light heavyweight grand prix bout, former Strikeforce champ Gegard Mousasi made embarrassingly quick work of UFC veteran Jake O’Brien.

An overweight O’Brien shot in sloppily in the opening seconds of the fight, and Mousasi secured the gift guillotine choke after falling down briefly. Mousasi regained his balance, cranked the hold, and O’Brien tapped out after just 31 seconds.

Mousasi (29-3-1 MMA, 6-0 DREAM) hardly broke a sweat in his first trip to Japan since New Year’s Eve, while O’Brien (13-4 MMA, 0-1 DREAM) likely won’t be invited back across the Pacific again after such a dismal display.

Despite just one submission victory to his credit since 2006, Japanese underdog Tatsuya Mizuno shocked powerful striker Melvin Manhoef with a first-round tapout in their light heavyweight grand prix bout.

Manhoef opened in typical fashion, and his striking attack appeared potent in the early going. But after Manhoef escaped a threat on the floor, it was Mizuno who rocked his opponent on the feet. With Manhoef appearing dazed, Mizuno followed to the floor and locked in a kimura to force the tap.

Mizuno (8-5 MMA, 1-1 DREAM) now owns three-straight victories, while Manhoef (24-8-1 MMA, 3-3 DREAM) falls to just 2-4 in his past six contests.
Mizuno now faces Mousasi for the light heavyweight grand prix final, a bout that appears likely for DREAM.16.

In a mismatch of epic proportions, -1200 favorite Michihiro Omigawa delivered the goods with a first-round stoppage of winless South Korean Young Sam Jung.

Omigawa maintained control of the fight throughout the contest, as was expected. Jung did threaten ever-so-briefly with an armbar attempt, but Omigawa was never really in trouble. Once free from the hold, Omigawa was free to later gain mount position in lock in a fight-ending guillotine choke at the 7:31 mark of the opening round.

Omigawa (11-8-1 MMA, 2-0 DREAM), despite his rather unimpressive career record, has now won seven of his past eight contests. Jung (0-3 MMA, 0-1 DREAM) is still searching for his first career win.

Colorful Japanese fighter Dalki Hata opened his bout with Mitsuhiro Ishida with a flying knee and closed it with a guillotine choke attempt. Unfortunately for “DJ.talki,” just about everything that happened in between favored the “Endless Fighter.”

Ishida controlled the action on the floor throughout the contest, threatening with an armbar early and delivering punishment from top position throughout the matchup. Hata worked to an advantageous position with the choke attempt in the second round, but he was never close to ending the fight and instead dropped a unanimous decision.

Ishida (19-6-1 MMA, 3-1 DREAM) snaps a two-fight losing streak with the result, while Hata (11-7-3 MMA, 1-2 DREAM) has now dropped two in a row.

The night’s opening matchup saw a bit more grappling than dangerous striker Karl Amoussou would have preferred. Kazuhiro Nakamura controlled the majority of the action on the floor, and he defended well in the few brief moments that his French opponent threatened on the feet.

Amoussou threatened at times from his back, but Nakamura controlled the majority of the action and was awarded the unanimous decision.

A UFC and PRIDE veteran, Nakamaura (15-10 MMA, 1-0 DREAM) has now won two-striaght fights following a difficult 2-5 stretch. Meanwhile, Amoussou (11-3-2 MMA, 0-1 DREAM) is now winless in his past two fights after settling for a technical draw in a February bout under the Strikeforce banner

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